Accessibility, mobility and transport-related welfare: the case of rural wales

Abstract

The welfare of rural communities depends to a large extent on standards of mobility and accessibility to (mainly urban) services. Probably the most valid measure is based on the needs and time/space budgets of specific population groups in specific villages (MOSELEY et al., 1977). For policy applications, there is a need for a way of evaluating ‘personal accessibility’ over a broader region rather than the detailed local case studies which such methods demand. A series of maps depicting aspects of accessibility and mobility is constructed for Rural Wales, at a parish level. The problem of weighting is potentially intractable, but it is argued that a simple points system is acceptable in combining these measures into a composite index.